Farag Fightback Takes Defending Champion Into Giza Semis

Defending champion Ali Farag was made to work for his semi-final berth in the CIB Egyptian Open as he came from behind to defeat his compatriot Tarek Momen 3/1 in the PSA World Tour Platinum event at the Pyramids of Giza.

World No.1 Farag went into the clash on the back of a six-match winning run against Momen - and had never before lost to his Egyptian team-mate on home soil - though it was the world No.6 who started brighter, playing a virtually error-free game to take the opener 11-6.

Momen continued to look impressive for much of the second game as he went 10-8 up. Top seed Farag, however, saved the two game balls, cutting out the errors to hit four successive points and take the second game 12-10, before moving into the lead with an 11-6 win in the third.

Both players looked fatigued in the fourth game, with the lively court and warm weather taking its toll on the pair. But Farag was able to push through, ending the match with a hard-fought 11-7 win.

Farag said afterwards: "It's one of those days you really want to play in Egypt and one of those days you're really [happy] to have having coaching back.

"You don't always feel your best going on court and Tarek definitely played the first game better and I just needed the extra encouragement as I couldn't find my rhythm and targets. It's great to have Karim [Darwish] with me.

"He has confidence in me and tells me 'Ok, if game A's not working today then it's just going to be mental and physical. Just get there.

"For some strange reason, I guess because the front wall is so fast, Tarek and I both got tired more easily than we'd normally do. I think it's because of the court conditions and bouncy court."

Farag will meet national rival Mostafa Asal in the semis after the No.3 seed overcame Egyptian compatriot Mazen Hesham 3/1.

Asal took the lead after a 24-minute first game, though the 21-year-old would have been concerned to see his 7-3 lead slip to 9-9 before his eventual 11-9 win.

In a brilliant second game that featured entertaining rallies and thrilling winners from both players, Hesham pulled level with an 11-9 win of his own, only for Asal to regain his lead with an 11-7 victory in the third.

In the fourth game, which was delayed by a jaw injury to Hesham and issues with the court lines, Asal eventually saw out the match in relative comfort with an 11-5 win.

"That was really tough actually," said Asal afterwards. "I'm happy to be through. This was my first hit on court and it was tricky. I didn't go on court today to practice in the morning and that was really difficult.

"I'm happy to get through and deal with all of the situations today."

In the women's draw, defending champion and world No.1 Nouran Gohar safely moved into the semi-finals by beating Canada's Hollie Naughton 3/0.

Naughton, playing in her first Platinum-level quarter-final, didn't look overawed by the occasion as she edged into a 5-3 lead in the first game.

Gohar, however, then began to find her groove, looking suddenly dominant as she won seven points in a row on the way to an 11-6 win, before easing into a 2/0 lead with an 11-3 win.

Gohar continued to look composed as the confidence drained from Naughton in the third game, with the 24-year-old wrapping up a 33-minute win with an 11-2 victory.

"Playing a tournament and winning it can be a good and bad thing as it can make you more relaxed," she said afterwards.

"[The South Western Women's Open in Houston] was my first tournament of the season and I was using it as preparation for this one.

"I enjoy playing in Egypt in general, especially here. I just wanted to come here in form and try to play my best."

Gohar's semi-final opponent Amanda Sobhy also recorded a comfortable 3/0 win, defeating Tesni Evans of Wales.

US No.1 Sobhy, who yesterday played a thrilling encounter against Nour El Tayeb, looked both sharp and relaxed throughout today in an entertaining match, taking the first game 11-7 before extending her lead with an 11-5 win in the second.

In a stop-start third game that saw both players utilising the newly-introduced review rule, Sobhy was able to keep her nose ahead to go through with an 11-8 win.

"It was a total contrast from yesterday on the normal courts, where [Sobhy and El Tayeb] were on at noon and we both play fast-paced attacking squash and here I feel like Tesni was trying to lull me into sleep a little bit, she slowed the pace down a ton," said Sobhy.

"It's totally different circumstances and you've got to take the quarter-finals on as different tournament.

"As much as I'm happy about my win and performance yesterday, it's done and I've got to move on and prepare for the next one as Tesni is a tough competitor and she's going to bring it, so I needed to do the same and I'm just happy to finally get a rest tomorrow!"